408: Overqualified

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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Overqualified
To anyone I've taken on a terrible date, this is retroactively my cover story.
Title text: To anyone I've taken on a terrible date, this is retroactively my cover story.

Explanation

Ambox notice.png This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: The title text is not well explained - what does retroactively mean in this sentence?
If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.
Megan's sister has a crush on Cueball, but Cueball doesn't feel the same way about her sister. To alleviate the situation without hurting Megan's sister's feelings, Megan wants Cueball to deliberately take her sister out on a bad date to convince her that Cueball is not worth dating, so that her sister can move on without rejection. Cueball becomes extremely excited at the thought of deliberately having a bad date, especially because he has had some awkward dates in high school. The joke is that people often want their dates to go as well as possible, and this is a rare opportunity to do the exact opposite.

The title text implies that in retrospect, Randall is reflecting on previous bad dates. When they occurred he had either no excuse or a poor excuse for why he was so awkward, but now this comic is going to be used as an explanation as to why. It is similar to thinking of a good comeback to an insult after the fact; this is his retort to ships that sailed long ago.

Transcript

[Megan on the phone.]
Megan: I know you're not that into my sister, but she's really crushing on you.
Cueball: Yeah, it's awkward.
Megan: She's in a rough spot. It's a lot to ask, but could you take her out and... Dissuade her, without rejecting her?
Cueball: Wait a second. Are you asking me to show her a mediocre time?
Megan: I know it's a weird—
[Cueball raising index finger.]
Cueball: No, no! This is the mission I was born for.
Megan: I figured you could handle it.
Cueball: One of my classic high-school dates coming up!
Megan: Oh God. Don't overdo it.
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Discussion

Added new description of title text 173.245.54.44 03:51, 3 June 2014 (UTC)

I came here looking for all the funny comments of bad dates, and here they are... 172.71.166.205OptimisticallyRejected